


Upon Wakening

by WrittenFire



Series: Whumptober 2019: Mcdanno Style [3]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, POV Steve McGarrett, poor steve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2021-02-25 05:35:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21910843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WrittenFire/pseuds/WrittenFire
Summary: Sometimes, nightmares had a way of staying with you.A 5+1 esque prompt fill of day three: Nightmare.
Relationships: Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams
Series: Whumptober 2019: Mcdanno Style [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1503434
Comments: 5
Kudos: 73





	Upon Wakening

**Author's Note:**

> So here it finally is, day three of Whumptober. And boy howdy, is it late! Instead of 5+1, it’s more of a 4+1. That’s just how it wound up. 
> 
> Enjoy!

1.

_ “Steve! Please, please, make it stop.” Mary cries, twisting in her captors hold in a futile attempt to escape. “Make them stop, please, just give them what they want.” She sobs, face awash in anguish. Steve wants to, wants nothing more than to save his sister. But when he opens his mouth, nothing comes out. Her screams follow him past his awakening. _

__

_ \-- _

Steve snaps to, scrambling for his cellphone. Ignoring the darkness of the sky outside his window, Steve dials Mary’s number. She is going to be pissed, he knows, but he  _ has  _ to know that she is ok. He won’t be able to calm down, otherwise.

\--

2.

_ This cant be happening. It can’t it can’t  _ **_it can’t_ ** _. They were  _ **_so careful_ ** _ , no one should have been able to find them. Grace and Charlie had done nothing to them, done nothing but be Danny’s kids, be important to their ohana.  _ **_They should have been safe._ ** _ This—this possibility he had refused to even contemplate, because just the thought of it sent his heart racing and left him overwhelmed with sorrow. _

_ That it’s become a reality…Steve is stuck, unable to even  _ **_breathe_ ** _ as he stares up at the safe house that was engulfed in flames. Danny is in anguish beside him, screaming and crying, calling their names and praying to a God he hardly believes in for it all to be a lie as he holds his partner close to stop him from entering the flames, Steve knows that Danny will never be the same. _

_ And neither will he. _

__

\--

Waking has never been as welcome as it was then; though he is gasping, has a lingering panic and  _ heartbreak _ he knows it was just a dream. It takes a moment for him to be able to move, but when the frozen panic passes Steve is rolling out of bed, padding on silent feet down the hall and to the guest room— _ Gracie’s room _ —easing the door open and gazing upon the sleeping faces of his two favorite children.

Charlie had fallen asleep in the room with Gracie, and the sight of the two of them curled up together under the blanket Grace had chosen for  _ her  _ bed eases the last of the lingering worries. They were there, and they were safe.

\--

3.

_ “Danny, Danny please. Don’t do this to me.” Steve begs, shaky hands rising to—shield? Reach out? He didn’t even know; he just knew that he ached to do  _ **_some_ ** _ thing. “Please, Danny.” _

_ “I’m sorry, Steve.” Danny is pale, unsteady and Steve wants nothing more than to hold him in his arms. Between one blink to the next Danny is gone and Wo Fat stands in his place, bloodied knife in his hand, Danny a sobbing, bloody mess between their feet. _

_ “Yes,  _ **_so_ ** _ sorry Steve.” Wo Fat drawls, bitingly sarcastic as he steps down on Danny’s wound, causing him to cry out. Steve rushes to tackle him out of the way, a cry of rage torn from his throat— _

\--

and wakes up with an aborted shout, wide eyed and gasping. He stumbles out of bed and to the restroom, throwing water on his face in an attempt to calm down, wake out of the terrified fugue.

It doesn’t work, for every time he closes his eyes, he sees Danny at his feet once again, bleeding and dying. No matter what he tries the picture doesn’t change, haunting him with an image he hopes will never come true. It doesn’t take long for him to give up and throw on clothes, barely remembering to stop and turn on the alarm behind him; he entertained the brief thought of just calling Danny like he had Mary, but knew that his voice alone would not be enough.

Steve needed to see him—to hear him breathe, feel the warmth of his skin—and that can only happen in person. The drive over is a bit of a blur; it feels as though between one blink and the next he was there, parking next to the Camaro and letting himself in.

He is sure to keep quiet, walking on silent footsteps to Danny’s room. the second he sees Danny, something inside of him instantly eases, and it's as if he can breathe again. He kicks his shoes off at the end of the bed, tucking them underneath and out of the way before digging in his pocket for his phone and keys to set on the bedside table.

Its as he is folding his clothes to put them aside that he hears Danny’s voice, low and sleep rough and  _ wonderful  _ to hear. “Steve?”

“Yeah, Danno.” He crawls underneath the covers Danny had lazily lifted for him, laying on his side so he can see him, drinking in his soft features that are bathed in moonlight from the open window.

“What—?” Danny starts to ask, cut off by a yawn that almost swallows his face, its so big. How could even  _ that _ be so endearing?

“Nothing, babe. Just go back to sleep.” Steve murmurs softly, reaching his hand out to Danny, stopping inches away when doubt starts to creep in. Danny is there before it can consume him, tangling their fingers together and pulling them close. Steve follows the action, easing a leg between Danny’s and resting his head on Danny’s pillow.

“Night, Steve. Love you.” Danny murmurs sleepily, falling asleep between one breath and the next.

“Love you too.” The words are soft, filed with all the emotion he normally suppresses; with their bodies close and Danny’s breath gently touching his face, Steve falls into a peaceful sleep.

\--

4.

_ Nothingness. It surrounds him, consumes him; voices sound, sinister and dark before they are gone again. Faces from his past appear, opening wounds already healed and bleeding him dry. He can’t escape from them-it— _ **_everything._ ** _ Steve wants nothing more than to be free, to  _ **_wakeupwakeupWAKEUP_ **

****

\--

Steve snaps awake, hands fisting in his blanket before slowly unfurling; though he can’t remember the details of the dream, the feelings linger—the hurt, despair. It’s a strange sensation, to so vividly remember the feelings but not the details, a sensation that will follow him throughout his day.

\--

+1.

_ “Steve, will you grab the rolls, please?” Doris asks, indicating where they are with a nod of her head. “We’re almost ready to eat.” She leads the way to the table, setting the bowl of mashed potatoes down just off center to where the turkey sits. _

_ He sets the rolls down in front of where he knows Gracie will sit—she always has at least two to start off with, and he wants to be sure she has the chance to grab however many she wants. Looking around the table he tries to figure out what is left; the turkey and ham are plated, along with the rolls, mashed potatoes, and gravy. _

_ The candied yams sit before the head of the table (his dad always essentially eats the entire dish by himself) and each seat has a glass before it, waiting to be filled with ice (in the kids case) and the drink of their choice. Before he can ask what’s missing his mom comes through with the cheesy potatoes and green beans, setting them down and looking at the table with a proud look on her face. _

_ “I’ll grab the drinks and your father; you call the rest in from outside.” Doris kisses his cheek as she passes him, calling his dad’s name as she makes her way up to his study. Steve goes to the lanai and takes a moment to just soak in the view; Danny and Stan sitting on the beach building a sand castle with Charlie, while Grace and Rachel stand ankle deep in the surf, locked into conversation. Just steps from them are Mary and Joanie, his niece’s face scrunching up with delight as the water laps at her little feet.  _

_ Steve gives them all a moment more before drawing their attention and calling them inside. The following few minutes are wonderfully hectic, the kids being sent to their rooms to change, calls to wash hands followed by pounding footsteps and excited chatter.  _

_ And then they are gathered together at the table, food changing hands and plates being filled. Dinner is noisy, perfect—the kind of affair Steve thought he would never have again. But somehow they found themselves here, together and happy and  _ **_loved_ ** _.  _

_ It is everything Steve has been longing for since his mother’s ‘death’. To be surrounded by his family again, to find someone to start his  _ **_own_ ** _ family with. With Danny, Steve's finally found that—and he couldn’t be happier. Looking around at them all, his entire  _ **_being_ ** _ filled with warmth and affection, Steve can no longer wait.  _

_ What better time to ask Danny for his hand in marriage than now, surrounded by their family? Sharing a look with his dad he clears his throat, catching the attention of the table. Steve opens his mouth, speech at the ready— _

—

And wakes up. Just as he feared, as he knew, it was all just a dream—or was it a nightmare? He can't tell. What he does know is that for the rest of the day, Steve won't be able to fight off this lingering feeling of loss. Because it  _ will  _ follow him around, invade his thoughts for the majority of what will no doubt be a long, long day. 

It’s how it went, whenever he dreamt about his dad. But this time, with the addition of what he wishes was his family? Steve doesn’t know how he is going to push past it this time. 

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this before the Doris episode of the recent series, so. Yeah. 
> 
> There will be a follow up to this with day 11: Stitches. Now, on to the next! 
> 
> Also, if you can think of any tags I missed, or you feel should be added, just let me know! Sometimes I’m awful at tagging.


End file.
